In this famously edgy series, we interrogate IT Pros in order to find out what makes them tick. In this episode, we examined the life of The Repairatrooper, aka "Mark."

Here is what we got out of him:

What brought you to Spiceworks?

Years ago I was stuck on something. Do not even really remember what, but came across the site, signed up, found my answer, and never came back for a long time.

What keeps you here?

When I came back and really engaged in the site, it became apparent that not only was there great support you can find when at a loss on a problem, but also being able to interact with other tech people gives an outlet that in a “one man shop” you just don’t get. I used to manage a retail service department and we had a tight knit group of 6 techs and we used to help each other out, rib each other, and generally have a good time; Spiceworks is like that.

What is your favorite aspect of the site?

The fact that 99% of the people here will not criticize if you ask what they feel is a stupid question. It is impossible to know every aspect of IT and professionals understand that. You build up a cache of goodwill by helping others in a supportive way that pays you back tenfold when you get into trouble.

What got you into the IT field?

I am an accidental tourist. I actually studied film production at University and when I graduated I was not ready to move to either Vancouver or LA. I actually started in IT sales, but found I was more interested in how the technology worked than I was in selling to people.

What has been your favorite part of the industry?

Non-stop change, things just do not stay static in the IT industry. On the other hand, the speed at which hacking and security threats have developed is scary and intimidating, particularly when the ultimate decision makers demonstrate a lack of understanding of the risks.

What do you do now?

My current job description is pretty scattered. I support our internal systems, with the help of one of our customers which happens to be be a consulting and support company. We have a good synergy with them as they do not touch or want to touch printers so they can bring us in to their clients and trust that they will get the same support for their printers that they are getting for their computer systems. I also manage the service side of the business, maintaining inventory levels for parts, managing technicians, training, installing new systems for customers, and troubleshooting client installs when they go off the rails. Oh, and I am the official "clean the needle on the Keurig machine" guy, even though I rarely use it.

How did you learn your job?

HP offers a lot of training opportunities, both classroom and online based. A lot of hands on. When I started my current position I quickly learned how much more I needed to know.

What are your favorite technologies to work with?

I think right now, the Pagewide ink devices are absolutely fascinating and absolutely frustrating at the same time. Like it or not, people are going to have to get used to the fact that a large portion of pages printed in the next five years are going to be ink. HP, Canon, and Epson have all released high speed, fixed printhead ink systems and I am sure that other vendors are not far behind. Lower energy costs, reduced cost of shipping supplies, reduced heat emissions, and near silent printing are all factors that will drive sales of ink.

What sort of challenges do you face in maintaining your infrastructure?

Just finding time to do everything. Because of the diverse job demands, there is always an emergency somewhere. In dealing with clients prioritizing looks like this: are you running or do you have another printer on the same floor? If yes, sorry to say you are at the bottom of the priority list.

What new technologies are you implementing or looking at? Why?

With the demise of Server 2008 and Windows 7 we are rolling out one new server and reconfiguring another one. Our current backup provider is changing software platforms so we are now reconsidering how we will deal with backups.

What recent projects have you wrapped up? What did you learn from them?

Most recent project was replacing an aging Ricoh copier with a new Laserjet. I am not sure if learn would be the right word, more of confirmation that you can never assume the information you have been provided by a customer is accurate. It turned out that the old copier would not fit through any of the doorways without removing an 8 foot tall, half inch thick glass door. After humming and hawing, I wound up removing several panels, unbolting the formatter cage that was hinged, and then bending the formatter around the side of the printer giving us enough space to squeeze it out. Second thing was never assume the client will tell you everything or will know everything. Went to configure the first user’s Mac and it would not find the printer. Turned out that the customer has 2 wireless networks, one for staff and one for guests, but their computers often drop signal and log on to the guest wifi which has no access to the printers.

Do you have any other story from the IT trenches that you would like to share?

Vancouver of course has a very active “adult film industry” and I once got a call from a client looking for help with a raid system. The call was at this nondescript industrial warehouse and as we were walking down the hallway, my contact points to a hallway and says “don’t go down there, that is where girls are filming.” We walk into this room and there are several folding leg tables in the middle of the room piled high with loose hard drives. Turns out they had won a legal judgment against a competitor which gave them all their competitors media content. Well they had pulled the drives out of numerous servers, thrown them all in a box and turned them over, no markings at all. I declined the job and got the heck out of there. They would call us every time they bought used hardware off Ebay but we eventually had to ask them to stop calling.

What advice do you have for people entering the IT field today?

I think that focusing on one area particularly would be one of the best approaches to long term satisfaction. Unless you really enjoy a job that is total chaos. If you love chaos, be a generalist.

Do you have any other advice or a message for your fellow SpiceHeads?

Printers are not as scary as many think.

What color is your toothbrush?

I use an Ionic toothbrush, white with pastel mint green accents.

Creamy or crunchy peanut butter?

Creamy. If I want crunch, I will have a handful of peanuts.

What is your favorite color?

Claret Red

What are your favorite hobbies?

Photography, RC cars, bicycles and I am trying to learn to play the guitar.

Why did the chicken cross the road?

Because the chicken was actually a stool pigeon.

What is your favorite movie or book?

Movie “The Blues Brothers” Book: “The Stand”

What is your favorite fictional universe, and why?

Taylor Anderson’s “Destroyermen” Take a group of WW2 sailors, dump them in an environment with no technology and watch how they use their knowledge to create from scratch what they need to fight a war.

Who asks you for IT assistance the most outside of work?

Wife

If you were a superhero (or supervillain) what would your super power be?

Flying; as I child I used to have vivid dreams about flying.

Do you listen to music while you work or do you prefer silence? If you do, then what Genre keeps you going?

I listen to a pretty wide range of music, Jazz, Rockabilly, and a lot of lesser known 80s music like Webb Wilder.

What was your first computer equipment?

First computer I used was a Commodore Pet 4032

What kind of personal computer equipment do you use now?

Home built i5 system, Windows 10 because I need to be able to help customers and we have no Win 10 at work yet.

What was Florida Man doing on a significant date in your life (Birthday, Anniversary, etc)?

May 26, 1990 Marlene Warren was shot outside her house by someone dressed as a clown.

What is your favorite food or meal?

Indian, anything spicy and vegan.

What spicy User Groups do you participate in?

[redacted]

If IT was Thanos-snapped and you had to choose a different career path, what would it be?

I do not follow the Marvel Universe so I had to look it up because I though Thanos-snapped was something that happened in high school and involved your underwear being wedged [redacted].

Do you prefer coffee or tea or something else?

T is a letter in the alphabet. Coffee, black coffee. If God had intended you to drink cream in your coffee, coffee would come from a cow’s udder.

What is a guilty pleasure that no one would suspect about you?

My vices are pretty much public. I certainly won’t talk about my last trip to Boise, and anything you hear about the horse statue is a lie.

_____And there you have it. The might-as-well-be-complete transcript of the interrogation. Feel free to ask additional questions in the comments below.

Be sure to tune in next time as we delve into the psyche of another subject.... or, if you think you can stand the heat, you can volunteer for your own interrogation. Write to news@spiceworks.com with the subject line "IT Interrogation" (or alternatively "Willing Victim"). Be sure to include your username.